BALTIMORE (AP) — Right-hander Andrew Kittredge's $9 million option was exercised Thursday by the Baltimore Orioles, who declined Jorge Mateo's $5.5 million option and allowed the infielder/outfielder to become a free agent.
Baltimore also agreed to a $2.1 million, one-year deal with free agent outfielder Leody Taveras.
Kittredge, a 35-year-old right-hander, was reacquired from the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday for cash.
Kittredge agreed in January to a $10 million, one-year contract that includes a the team option with a $1 million buyout. He went 4-3 with five saves and a 3.40 ERA for the Orioles and Cubs, who obtained him on July 31 for minor league shortstop Wilfri De La Cruz.
Mateo earned $3.55 million this year. The 30-year-old hit .177 with one homer and three RBIs in 42 games, sidelined between June 6 and Sept. 5 by left elbow inflammation.
The 27-year-old Taveras hit .205 in 58 games last season for Texas and Seattle.
Baltimore designated right-hander Carson Ragsdale and left-hander Josh Walker for assignment, and outfielders Dylan Carlson and Daniel Johnson cleared waivers and elected free agency in lieu of accepting assignment to Triple-A Norfolk. The Orioles selected the contract of right-hander Anthony Nunez from Norfolk.
Left-hander José Castillo was claimed off waivers by the New York Mets, and Baltimore claimed outfielder Pedro León off waivers from the Houston Astros.
Right-hander Shawn Dubin cleared waivers, was assigned to Norfolk and is now a minor league free agent. The Orioles have 40 players on their 40-man roster.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
FILE - Baltimore Orioles' Jorge Mateo (3) warms up before a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Sept. 17, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley, File)
NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — Sepp Straka made three birdies and two eagles on the par 5s for an 8-under 64 and seized on some late misses by Scottie Scheffler to take a one-shot lead Saturday going into the final round of the Hero World Challenge.
Straka chipped in for eagle on the par-5 sixth and played great golf just to keep pace with Scheffler, who had five straight 3s on his scorecard to start the third round and was 9 under for his round through 15 holes.
Scheffler, going for a third straight win at Albany Golf Club, has stumbled over the final three holes every day this week — a double bogey on the 16th on Thursday, a bogey on the 16th on Friday, and then a bogey-par-bogey finish.
He still had a 65 and will be in the final group with Straka on Sunday.
Straka seized on the par 5s. Along with his chip-in on the sixth hole, he holed an 18-foot eagle putt on the downwind, par-5 15th. He also hit a 3-wood that landed perfectly in front of the green at the par-5 ninth that rolled out to 15 feet for a two-putt birdie.
He trailed Scheffler by three shots through five holes, and by two shots with four holes left. But Straka was bogey-free on the day and finished at 18-under 198.
“He definitely got it going quick,” Straka said of the world's No. 1 player. “It didn’t look like he was going to miss a putt there for a little bit. But it’s golf, it usually evens out a lot and I just tried to focus on my own game.”
The only par 4 that Straka birdied was No. 7, where the tee was moved back. That kept players from trying to drive the green and instead tested them with a wedge to a dangerous back-left pin. Straka took it on and hit it to 7 feet.
Scheffler, who went left of the 16th fairway the opening two rounds — one of those leading to a penalty drop from a bush — this time found the short grass and it wasn't much better. He had an awkward stance, tugged it left into a bunker and the ball buried in the sand, leading to bogey.
He also dropped a shot on the 18th by missing the green to the right — water is left — leaving a tricky pitch up the slope.
“A few unfortunate breaks, but overall did some really good stuff,” Scheffler said.
Alex Noren (67) and Hideki Matsuyama (68) were three shots behind Straka, while J.J. Spaun and Wyndham Clark each shot 69 and were four behind.
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Hideki Matsuyama, of Japan, studies his putt on the 18th hole during the third round of the Hero World Challenge PGA Tour at Albany Golf Club in New Providence, Bahamas, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
Scottie Scheffler, of the United States, reacts to making a birdie on the fourth hole during the third round of the Hero World Challenge PGA Tour at the Albany Golf Club, in New Providence, Bahamas, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
Scottie Scheffler, of the United States, reacts after the third round of the Hero World Challenge PGA Tour at the Albany Golf Club, in New Providence, Bahamas, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
Sepp Straka, of Austria, reacts after his putt on the 18th hole during the third round of the Hero World Challenge PGA Tour at Albany Golf Club in New Providence, Bahamas, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
Sepp Straka, of Austria, watches his hit from the sand on the 6th hole during the third round of the Hero World Challenge PGA Tour at the Albany Golf Club, in New Providence, Bahamas, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
